Xi River

Xi Jiang
Looking across the Xi River from Heshan to Jiujiang, Foshan City.
The Pearl River system including the Xi River
Location
CountryChina and Vietnam
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationGui Jiang and Xun Jiang in Wuzhou
Mouth 
 • location
The Pearl River Delta on the South China Sea
 • elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Length2,197 km (1,365 mi) to 2,271.8 km (1,411.6 mi) (XiXunQianHongshuiNanpan)
Basin size437,000 km2 (169,000 sq mi)[1]
Discharge 
 • locationPearl Delta
 • average(Period: 2010–2020)9,631 m3/s (340,100 cu ft/s)[1]
 • minimum3,600 m3/s (130,000 cu ft/s)[1]
 • maximum34,000 m3/s (1,200,000 cu ft/s)[1]
Discharge 
 • locationWuzhou
 • average7,410 m3/s (262,000 cu ft/s)[2]
Basin features
ProgressionSouth China Sea
River systemPearl River
Tributaries 
 • leftHe Jiang, Gui Jiang, Hongshui Ho, Qian Jiang
 • rightYu Jiang, Xun Jiang
Xi River
Chinese西江
JyutpingSai1 gong1
Hanyu PinyinXī Jiāng
PostalWest River
Literal meaningWestern River
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinXī Jiāng
Wade–GilesHsi1 Chiang1
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingSai1 gong1
The location of Xi River in China
Marble Hill (Cockscomb Rock) on the West River, around 1871
Xi River in Zhaoqing.

The Xi River (/ʃ/;[3] Chinese: 西江) or Si-Kiang[4] is the western tributary of the Pearl River in southern China. It is formed by the confluence of the Gui and Xun Rivers in Wuzhou, Guangxi. It originates from the eastern foot of the Maxiong Mountain in Qujing City, Yunnan Province. Then it flows east through Guangdong, and enters the Pearl River Delta just east of the Lingyang Gorge in Zhaoqing. The main branch of the Xi River flows southeast through the delta entering the South China Sea at Modao Men, just west of Macau. The major cities along the Xi include Wuzhou, Zhaoqing, and Jiangmen.

The other two main tributaries of Pearl River are the Dong River (literally, the East River) and Bei River (the Northern River). As for other functions, it plays a vital role in carbon storage and transport in Southern China.[5] The Xi River is facing some ecological challenges such as drought,[6] invasive species,[7] and pollution.[8]

  1. ^ a b c d Ying, Zhang; Jianping, Gan; Qichun, Yang (2024). "Spatiotemporal variability of streamflow in the Pearl River Basin: Controls of land surface processes and atmospheric impacts". Hydrological Processes. 38 (4). doi:10.1002/hyp.15151.
  2. ^ NASA.gov
  3. ^ "Xi". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.
  4. ^ Other transliterations of the river's name include Hsi River and Hsi Chiang.
  5. ^ Zou, Junyu (2017). "Geochemical characteristics and organic carbon sources within the upper reaches of the Xi River, southwest China during high flow". Journal of Earth System Science. 126 (1): 126(1), 1–10. Bibcode:2017JESS..126....6Z. doi:10.1007/s12040-016-0792-9. S2CID 132266505.
  6. ^ Wang, Keyi; Niu, Jun; Li, Tiejian; Zhou, Yang (2020). "Facing Water Stress in a Changing Climate: A Case Study of Drought Risk Analysis Under Future Climate Projections in the Xi River Basin, China". Frontiers in Earth Science. 8: 86. Bibcode:2020FrEaS...8...86W. doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00086. ISSN 2296-6463.
  7. ^ Gu, Dangen; Yu, Fandong; Hu, Yinchang; Wang, Jianwei; Xu, Meng; Mu, Xidong; Yang, Yexin; Wei, Hui; Shen, Zhixin (2020). "Non-native fishes in eight rivers of South China: species composition, distribution patterns, and potential influencing factors". www.authorea.com. doi:10.22541/au.158325439.94846492. Retrieved 2021-04-18.
  8. ^ Lian, Meihua; Wang, Jun; Sun, Lina; Xu, Zhe; Tang, Jiaxi; Yan, Jun; Zeng, Xiangfeng (2019). "Profiles and potential health risks of heavy metals in soil and crops from the watershed of Xi River in Northeast China". Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 169: 442–448. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2018.11.046. ISSN 0147-6513. PMID 30471581.

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